Page 611

Ch.XVII THE KINGDOM OF CYPRUS, 1191—1291 611 
 Immediately he wrote his "dear uncle", John of Ibelin, bailie since the
death of Philip in 1227, asking him to join him and bring the young king.
Though many of the Cypriote barons distrusted the emperor, Ibelin determined
to obey the summons, for he did not wish "that people could say throughout
the world: ' The emperor of Rome came across the sea in great force and would
have conquered all, but that the lord of Beirut and other disloyal men of
Outremer loved the Saracens better than the Christians, and because of this
they revolted against the emperor and did not wish that the Holy Land should
be " 33 
 Frederick received Ibelin cordially, invited him to a banquet, and persuaded
him and his retinue to put off their mourning garments for more cheerful
robes of scarlet. But at the banquet, after filling the hail with armed men,
Frederick made three demands: 
that John surrender the person of king Henry to him as suzerain of Cyprus;
that John render an accounting of the bailliage since the death of Hugh;
and that he surrender Beirut, which, as a fortress of Conrad's kingdom, should
be in Frederick's hands as regent for his young son, since Isabel had died
before Frederick sailed for the east. John reluctantly conceded the emperor's
right to the custody of king Henry. As for the second demand, he declared
that he was not responsible for accounting for the revenues of Cyprus, which
had been given to queen Alice, and offered to prove his case before the high
court of Nicosia, by whose authority he held the bailliage. As for Beirut,
he held it as a fief, granted by queen Isabel and king Aimery, and appealed
to the high court of Acre, which alone should judge matters of feudal tenure
in Jerusalem: "Et sire, vous soiès certains que pour doute de mort
ou de prizon je ne feray plus, se jugement de boune court et de loyale ne
la me faisoit faire."34 Thus the issue was joined. 
 After giving hostages for his appearance in the high courts of Cyprus and
Jerusalem, the "old lord" withdrew to Nicosia, whither Frederick followed
him. Refusing to take up arms against his lord (for Frederick, as overlord
of the king of Cyprus, could claim John's allegiance as a Cypriote vassal),
the lord of Beirut withdrew to the fortress of Dieudamour. At this point,
Frederick received word of the rebellion fomented against him by Gregory
IX in Italy. He was anxious to finish his crusade and return to the west,
and made a treaty with John by which the hostages were returned, and 
  Philip of Novara, The Wars (tr. LaMonte), pp. 75—76. For this situation
and the ensuing conflict as it affected the kingdom of Jerusalem, see above,
chapter XV, pp. 543—554, 
  Gestes des Chiprois, 127 (RHC, Arm., II), p. 679; Philip of Novara, The
Wars (tr. LaMonte), p. 79.